~ a sometimes intrepid exploration of a virtual world

The Path Away From the Synthetic Matrix

Autumn is gradually arriving with days when the sun feels good again, there’s a little less daylight and that back-to-school vibe is happening even if you’ve been out of school a long time. As an avatar, I don’t suffer from sunburns, yard work, chilly winds or the laundry getting piled up so autumn is as carefree as any other season.

That isn’t to say I can do as I wish all the time. My continued existence depends on the whims of my human who’s been allowing me out of my sky box a little more lately, the sky box where I’ve been parked as she works in another window or putters around her home which has actual dust and live plants and such.

So I went to explore near The Grove Country Club Estates in Casablanca Bay. The first thing I noticed was the tasteful, unobtrusive signage which gives information and direction without looking hideous.

Near the landing there are bikes to rent. I chose to walk and experienced enough lag that I was relieved not to be riding. Otherwise, these public paths look like great places to ride bikes. They wander around the area in a more extensive way than I often see.

Most of the sim is private residences in gated communities. The build of rolling hills and fences give a lot of privacy. Walking around I got a few glimpses at the homes which appear to be very luxurious.

I had learned of Casablanca Bay by revisiting a Second Life travel agency called Terra Incognita where there’s a new selection of one light and one dark sim every month. The dark sim for September is Steelhead Boomtown, which has been around for a while, so this one could very well be an established sim too.There’s a club which is public; a group can be joined to learn of events. I liked the looks of it as compared to those I’ve seen the last couple of years. I’m not much of a club goer, tending to find them annoying.

I had a drink and enjoyed the quiet, pondering my human’s wishes that she could break up with the internet. I worried a little about her internal rants regarding intrusive colonizing by corporations, the ramp up of bombarding information and mind control, the waste of resources and general jackassery going on.

Whenever she reaches a junction of synthetic matrix and an organic path, she’s more often choosing the natural path. Really, don’t get her started talking about this.

But she cares about me so if she continues to take good care of herself and her life, I may very well get to continue to explore for quite some time.

I left the club and soon found a beautiful courtyard with a fountain. Then I headed towards the beach, walking through a vineyard to get there. There’s a gorgeous building with a wine cellar and someone had left it unlocked! Cheese wheels! Wine!

Soon all the exercise and wine and cheese sampling made me crash on the beach for a while. There’s a fire pit or two for when the evenings get a little chilly.

When I arrived here it was night time region setting so I chose mid day sun on the Lab viewer. It wasn’t the best light for the place but I wasn’t in a mood to fuss too much with the photography.

Otherwise, I’ve been wandering down mainland roads looking at the changes. (Mostly not for the better.) Some people are still building and settling and I’ve seen some amusing things.